How to recover after hitting the deck

City cycling is great, but if we don’t get home in one piece that’s a problem. Observe these tips to ensure safe cycling.

Crashing hurts. And unfortunately it’s a part of cycling. And while broken skin is easily patched up and covered, the next day your bruised and battered body can feel like it’s been hit by a truck. Here are some recovery tips by ALP Coach Alison Powers who has had her share of run ins with the pavement (see picture).

When you hit the pavement, it can cause the obvious cuts, abrasions, road rash, bruising and swelling. But crashing can also cause inflammation in the body that we can not see. So here’s how to take care of your body:

– Get medical help if anything is seriously hurt or broken. But for minor injuries:

Clean and cover
– The first thing that needs to be done after a crash is to wash the road rash and any abrasions to the skin. It’s important to clean out the wound(s) as best as possible to avoid any infections. Once cleaned out, there are differing opinions on how to best heal road rash. Some suggest leaving the wound open to let it dry and scab, other suggest covering the rash with Tegaderm to keep it moist. My vote is Tegaderm.

Ice
– After the visible road rash, cuts and scrapes are cleaned and covered, the next thing to address is the bruising and inflammation. Anything that hurts or is already showing signs of swelling should be iced. Apply ice to painful areas for 10 minutes and plan to ice for 10 minutes of every hour (10 minutes on, 50 minutes off).

Anti-inflammatories
– IbuProfen is great to help inflammation and pain management from the inside out.

Sleep
– I also like IbuProfen because it helps me sleep after a crash, and sleep helps healing, making it so I don’t feel as bad the next day.